Can learning to listen to your heart beat reduce cancer anxiety?
NCT ID NCT06954532
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study tested a new type of training called ADIE Therapy for breast cancer survivors who often feel anxious even after treatment ends. The training teaches people to better notice their own heartbeat and other body signals. 21 survivors took part in six sessions to see if the training was acceptable and easy to do. The goal was not to cure cancer but to see if this approach could help with anxiety.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Interoceptive training (behavioural therapy)
- What this could lead to
- If this training works, it could offer a new way to help breast cancer survivors manage anxiety by improving how they perceive body signals.
- What could go wrong
- This is a very small, early feasibility study with only 21 participants, so results may not apply widely. The training is not a treatment for cancer itself.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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21 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Jun 2025
- Finished
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Apr 2026
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
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Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * 18 years old or older * Residing in the UK and able to travel into London * Can read and write in English * Have had a diagnosis of Primary Breast Cancer * Have completed active, hospital-based treatment for primary breast cancer (Stages 1, 2 or 3; this refers to radiotherapy, surgery, or chemotherapy) 6 months - 10 years previously (this does not apply to ongoing endocrine (hormone) therapy) Exclusion Criteria: * Currently taking medication for cardiac arrhythmia (e.g., beta blockers) * Currently in active treatment for breast cancer and/or other types of cancer * Currently pregnant
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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King's College London
London, SE1 9RT, United Kingdom
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